One consistent area of concern for the Philadelphia Eagles throughout the 2025 season has been the lack of depth at cornerback. This was exposed yet again on Sunday when Adoree' Jackson was forced to exit the 24-21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys with a concussion. It left the Eagles with very few options and exposed exactly what the current issues are Philly is facing. The Athletic's Brooks Kubena noted that it appeared defensive coordinator Vic Fangio had zero trust in Kelee Ringo or Jakorian Bennett.
When Jackson was injured, the Eagles moved Cooper DeJean to the outside, putting Michael Carter II in at nickel. Both Bennett and Ringo were healthy, and yet Fangio had zero trust in either player,
Moving DeJean to the outside speaks to a deeper problem for the Eagles, one that Philly attempted to address ahead of this year's trade deadline, bringing in Jaire Alexander. The veteran corner promptly stepped away from the team and was placed on the Reserve/Retired List, leaving a clear liability that is now being exposed by the fact that Fangio doesn't trust his depth at the position.
Eagles Have a CB2 Problem After Cooper DeJean Switch-Up
Putting Carter on the field and sliding DeJean to the outside sends a clear message that the Eagles don't trust Ringo or Bennett when the game matters. This is an issue with Jackson missing an unknown amount of time due to a concussion, and Carter remaining a question mark.
At the same time, it isn't like Philly has many potential solutions. The trade deadline is almost a month in the past, meaning the Eagles will be stuck with internal options and whatever is left in free agency.
Looking at potential additions is unquestionably bleak, with Stephon Gilmore and Kendall Fuller being the only possible additions of note. Neither player is an obvious upgrade over the current options, especially this late in the year, leaving the Eagles with a high level of concern about how the secondary is going to hold up until Jackson makes his return.
Philadelphia is scheduled to take on the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Chargers in the next two weeks, offering little respite for the struggling secondary. With this in mind, Fangio might be left no other choice than to give both Ringo and Bennett snaps in hopes of either player turning around their struggling careers.
This was the case with Jackson, who appeared to be on his way out of Philly before a recent resurgence that helped Philly's dominating defensive effort. As frustrating as Bennett and Ringo have been, the Eagles truly have no other option needing DeJean's steady presence on the inside for the defense to work at its absolute best.
Ringo has shown flashes of productivity and would be far from the first George Bulldogs alum to work out in Philadelphia's favor. While Fangio's answer was clear in Week 12, it wasn't enough to lock up the win and left a number of future concerns. The Eagles are simply in a tough position, with no other choice but to hope their CB2 situation solves itself before it's too late.